The Recipe Writer's Handbook, Revised and Updated (Paperback)

~ (Author), Jane Baker (Author) "JUST AS KITCHEN TESTING IS the key to a successfully prepared recipe, editorial testing is the key to a well-written recipe..." (more)
Key Phrases: recipe writer, recipe writing, doneness tests, New York, The Recipe Writer's Handbook, New Zealand (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

This guidebook is one of few aimed at its select audience (professional food writers), but you don't have to be a pro to appreciate it. It's also a great resource for all of those self-publishing cookbook authors out there. Authors Barbara Gibbs Ostmann and Jane L. Baker, both experienced newspaper foodies, culled information from a fistful of sources (Williams Sonoma and Food & Wine among them) to create their guide. The results should be a relief both to food writers and to the cooks who rely on their recipes. The Recipe Writer's Handbook addresses recipe-writing style, spellings of common (and not so common) ingredients, definitions of cooking terminology, and nutritional analysis. It stresses, above all else, accuracy, consistency, and clarity; it admonishes the recipe developer to assume nothing about what the readers know (apparently, one editor was asked by a reader how far to drop drop cookies; another got a call from a woman who wanted to know whether her new oven was preheated). Most interesting is the final section, in which food professionals wax philosophical on what makes a good recipe good. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description

The Recipe Writer’s Handbook Revised and Updated
Barbara Gibbs Ostmann and Jane L. Baker

The definitive reference for recipe writing
Offering comprehensive guidance on the intimate elements of the recipe writing art, The Recipe Writer’s Handbook is an indispensable companion for anyone who develops, tests, writes, or edits recipes—for publication, for broadcast, or simply to share with family and friends. The Handbook shows how to achieve accuracy and consistency—the hallmarks of the well-written recipe and provides complete and proven guidelines for recipe testing and writing, with coverage of format and syntax, spelling, terminology, weights and measurements, presentation, and other key areas. There is an added focus on writing recipes for an international audience, plus advice from radio, television, and Internet experts on developing recipes for each of those media.

Barbara Gibbs Ostmann (Union, MD) is a food and travel writer for the New York Times Regional Newspaper Group, with over twenty years of experience in newspaper, magazine, and cookbook writing and editing. Jane L. Baker (East Lansing, MI), a home economist with more than twenty-five years of experience in food writing, editing, and recipe development, is Director of Domestic Marketing for the Cherry Marketing Institute.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; Rev Upd edition (March 30, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471405450
• ISBN-13: 978-0471405450
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.8 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #32,134 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I would be lost without this excellent resource, April 5, 2000

By	Rebecca Johnson "SeasonedwithLove.com" (Washington State) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

This review is from: The Recipe Writer's Handbook (Hardcover)

Barbara Gibbs Ostmann is the expert on cookbook writing. I recommend reading this book before you start writing your recipes. I already had everything typed in one file on my computer when I first found her book.

I simply used my search tools in Word to locate all the items she discussed and believe me I had made quite a few common mistakes. The book itself was extremely useful...I was however more impressed that when I wrote to Barbara - she actually wrote back and gave me some of the best advice I have ever recieved. After using almost every principle taught in this book, I can truly say that I have produced a cookbook I am proud of and will enjoy using for a lifetime.

So, whether you grew up overseas like I did and didn't realize powdered sugar was actually called confectioners' sugar, or you are writng recipes that contain foreign words, this is also the book for you. The chapter which gave information on leading food authorities gave me a greater insight into what I needed to give my readership.

If this is the perfect guide - I hope I have produced the perfect cookbook. Thank you Barbara for taking the time to help cookbook writers everywhere. Now I am taking the next step - finding a publisher and creating a website.

~The Rebecca Review

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Don't write without it., August 29, 2005

By	Love a fare (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews

I purchased this book and it's pretty beat up already from having referenced it frequently for the past three years. I began food writing on a whim and thought this book would be helpful. It helps the novice writer become a pro. What more can you ask for.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Indispensable, September 5, 2001

By	carole kotkin (Miami, Florida) - See all my reviews

This book now has a permanent place on my desk as an important reference book. Too bad it wasn't around when I wrote MMMMiami--Tempting Tropical Tastes for Home Cooks Everywhere. The book ranges from sophisticated information for the professional writer to general information for the novice. The book is arranged by categories such as recipe writing style and basic metrics. The authors take your hand and guide you through the difficult task of writing clear, interesting, and consistent recipes.